Chinese C.V. 📝 The Ultimate Guide to Writing Your CV in Chinese!

Q: How do you write a C.V. in Chinese?

Hopefully this guide will help you! If you are still not sure feel free to pop a comment down below to ask any of your questions.

Q: How do you say C.V. in Chinese?

CV in Chinese is 简历 (jiǎnlì)

Q: Is the format the same as a Western C.V?

Not quite! Chinese CVs are more direct, and brief - ideally no more than two pages. Hopefully this guide will help you identify the key differences! Another difference is instead of reference letters, the self-evaluation section is more popular and common in China.

Q: If I'm a beginner can I still write a C.V. in Chinese?

Yes! - have a go, it is a good way to practice and learn Chinese as you are describing yourself.

Q: Is it necessary to have a C.V. in Chinese?

Yes - if you want to apply for a job in China it will definitely be beneficial to your career!

Learn Chinese • By LTL Team HQ • August 31, 2021

Your Guide on How to Write The Perfect C.V. in Chinese?

Before we get started let’s learn on how to say C.V. or Resumé in Chinese

Essential Vocabulary: 简历 (jiǎnlì) – C.V.

You might already have a job and the perfect C.V.

Great!

Do you remember how to introduce your job or occupation in Chinese?

Recap: 我当英语老师 – Wǒ dāng yīngyǔ lǎoshī – I’m a English Teacher

Nevertheless, if you are a student getting ready to apply for a job and you are studying Chinese (at whatever level), have you ever wondered how to write your C.V. in Chinese?

Then, you are in the right place!

This is a quick pocket guide on how to write your C.V. in Chinese and some useful vocabulary to help make you stand out against your candidates.

This guide is especially useful if you plan to work or live in China and want to apply to work for a Chinese company.

Chinese C.V. – Where to Start?
Chinese C.V. – The Structure & What to Include?
Chinese C.V. – Website Recommendation
Chinese C.V. – Is it worth it?
Chinese C.V. – FAQ’s + Template Download
Chinese C.V. – Quiz

Play

CV in Chinese – Where to Start?

It is important first to highlight a couple of differences between Chinese and Western C.V’s.

Here’s just a couple of points on the layout to get us started, there are of course a couple more which will be pointed out along the way.

Layout	Western C.V.	Chinese C.V.
Length	One to two pages	One page (at most two pages)
Date	Time duration – “day-month- year”	Time duration must be included – “year-month-day”
Self-Portrait	Not required	Typically required – headshot image
Order of experience	Chronological – most recent to earliest	Chronological – most recent to earliest

As with any C.V. a neat and structured appearance is always welcomed!

Especially, with a Chinese C.V., try to make your points clear and concise!

A good way to achieve this is to use bold horizontal lines separating each section or using headers or sub-headers.

Remember when typing your resumé in Chinese, it’s better to use a normal font rather than some exaggerated fancy font which is not professional and taken seriously!

Quite often you will find that some Chinese C.V.s resemble an application form.

FREE DOWNLOAD ALERT – Download a CV template here.

This type of format can however, feel a tad impersonal and it can be fiddly to fit in all the necessary text.

As every C.V. is different for each person, we are going to use a basic format which people can easily tailor according to their needs and experiences.

BONUS TIP: As with any C.V. it is best to stress on the related experiences and skills that are relevant for the position your can applying to! At the end of the day you want them to notice you!

CV in Chinese – Structure & What to Include?

Personal Information
Educational Background
Work & Internship Experience
Awards
Skills or Certifications and other
Self Evaluation

Personal Information – 个人信息 (gèrén xìnxī)

Similar to the Western C.V.’s the first part requires your personal information.

Typically with any C.V., some common points that you may see under this section are:

First and Last name – 姓名 (xìng míng)
Email address – 邮箱 (yóu xiāng)
Phone – 电话 (diàn huà)
Address – 地址 (dì zhǐ)

However, you might notice that some Chinese resumés have more personal data, some may even include:

Highest degree obtained – 学历 (xué lì)
Gender – 性别 (xìng bié)
Date of birth – 出生日期 (chū shēng rì qī)
Nationality – 国籍 (guó jí)
Passport number – 护照号码 (hùzhào hàomǎ)
Academic degree – 学位 (xué wèi)
Language ability – 语言能力 (yǔ yán néng lì)
Salary expectations – 期望薪水 (qī wàng xīn shuǐ)
Health status – 健康状况 (jiàn kāng zhuàng kuàng)
Marriage status – 婚姻状况 (hūn yīn zhuàng kuàng)

Tip: My Chinese friend told me that it’s best to just put your name (Chinese & English), a photo, your email address and telephone number.

Although you might see the other details on sample Chinese resumés, it is not entirely necessary as the interviewer can always ask for this information during the interview.

If you don’t feel comfortable putting this sensitive information down, it is probably best to seek advice from the company you are trying to apply for.

Educational background – 教育经历 (jiàoyù jīnglì)

This section is quite important. But not to worry we are here to guide you through!

Like with a standard C.V. you should list your educational experience from newest to oldest.

Typical things to include are:

The college/university attended – 大学 (dà xué)
The degree completed – 学位 (xué wèi)
- Doctorate Degree – 博士 (bó shì)
- Master’s Degree – 硕士 (shuò shì)
- Bachelor’s Degree – 学士 (xué shì)
The major you studied – 专业 (zhuān yè)
Your GPA (in Chinese most people just use the term GPA directly)
Relevant courses that might link you to the position you are applying for – 主修课程 (zhǔ xiū kè chéng)
Any special programs you completed during your university career – 项目 (xiàng mù)
If you have experience studying abroad – 留学经历 (liú xué jīng lì)

Tip: Align the date and the location of your University to the left. See the photo as an example.
If you are still studying at University, put the date you started and the end date as 至今 (zhìjīn). This simply means until the present time.

Work & Internship Experience – 工作与实习经历 (gōngzuò yǔ shíxí jīnglì)

Work and internship experience is an important section especially if you apply for a job that requires industry knowledge and know-how.

Here you can list any work experience of internships that you have had.

Similar to most resumés, here is a list on what you should include:

Name of the company – 公司 (gōng sī)
Duration of employment – 就职时间 (jiù zhí shí jiān)
Location of the company (if specifying the country, state/province, and city, be sure to work from biggest to smallest) – 地点 (dì diǎn)
Department you worked in – 部门 (bù mén)
Name of the position – 职位 (zhí wèi)
Job responsibilities you had in the position – 职责 (zhí zé)
Noteworthy accomplishments you made in that position – 业绩 (yè jì)

The content you need to elaborate on are your responsibilities and accomplishments from relevant tasks.

Describing what your responsibilities were at your previous jobs in a second language can be quite difficult!

Don’t worry, the best thing to do is after you’ve had a try writing your C.V. is to get a Chinese friend or teacher to proof read it over for you.

Tip: Cover letters are less common in China so try to concisely sum up the experience you’ve had.
Perhaps maybe use sub-headers like “position” (职位), “responsibilities” (职责), and “accomplishments” (业绩) for a structured and polished style with clear indications as to where the information lies.

Awards – 获奖情况 (huòjiǎng qíngkuàng)

This section might not be necessary, but it is good to list any awards or scholarships you have gained at your University or work.

It might even be useful to list any competitions you have participated in and have gained a trophy or some form of award.

Some words that might be useful are:

Awards – 奖 (jiǎng)
Scholarships – 奖学金 (jiǎng xué jīn)
Competition – 比赛 (bǐ sài)
3rd Place – 三等奖 (sān děng jiǎng)

Skills or Certificates and others – 技能/证书及其他 (jìnéng/zhèngshū jí qítā)

Skills are highly important to list!

Some things to include in this section are other foreign languages you are proficient in.

It is useful to state any standardized exams you have taken such as HSK and the level of test taken or level you think are at.

You might also want to include in this section any software programs you are highly familiar with such as Excel or WordPress.

Some useful vocabulary that might help you are:

Foreign language – 外语 (wài yǔ)
Language ability – 语言能力 (yǔ yán néng lì)
- Beginner – 初级 (chū jí)
- Intermediate – 中级 (zhōng jí)
- Advanced – 高级 (gāo jí)
Proficient in – 熟练 (shú liàn)
Software – 软件 (ruǎn jiàn)
To use (formal) – 使用 (shǐ yòng)
Website – 网站 (wǎng zhàn)

Tip: You can also list your hobbies and interests in this section too or in the next section below.

Self evaluation – 自我评价 (zì wǒ píng jià)

In some Chinese resumés this section is called “hobbies and interests” (兴趣爱好: àihào xìngqu)

This last section normally outlines why you think you are a good fit for the company or position in question through your interests, experiences and skills.

In this way, different to Western C.Vs this section is much more informal and personal.

Typical things to list here are:

Hobbies – 爱好 (ài hào)
Your interests – 兴趣 (xìng qù)
Personal characteristics – 个人特点 (gè rén tè diǎn)
Personal experiences – 个人经验 (gè rén jīng yàn)

In this way it might be useful to list your interests that the company you are applying for might find appealing.

This also applies to your experiences as you might posses certain characteristics the company is looking for.

Personal characteristics and experiences of course vary for each individual.

For personal characteristics it might be useful to include examples such as:

Strong ability to solve problems – 解决问题能力较强 (jiě jué wèn tí néng lì jiào qiáng)
Strong communication skills – 沟通能力很强 (gōu tōng néng lì hěn qiáng)
Excellent organization abilities – 优秀的组织才能 (yōu xiù de zǔ zhī cái néng)

Try and point out your strengths to the company that you might think will be useful for the position you want to apply to.

For personal experiences, again this depends on you!

It might be useful here to list some of the experiences you’ve had and gained throughout your academic year

BONUS TIP: You can use this part to tell them what kind of person you are and what you can do for them.

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CV in Chinese – Website Recommendation

If you are still struggling to write your C.V. and you don’t know how to structur it we would recommend visiting the website WonderCV.

My Chinese friend recommended WonderCV to me.

Although it is in Chinese, it is a great way to get started.

WonderCV is a platform that helps you build your C.V. & much more!

You can create an account using your WeChat and use their templates to create a C.V.

Bear in mind, you only get one free choice, if you would like to use another template you might have to pay.

The great thing about this website is that it builds your C.V. for you according to your requirements (i.e. if you are student or researcher).

If your Chinese is good enough to navigate through websites then this is a perfect option for you.

But don’t worry if it isn’t, you can always consult your teacher or friend to help you.

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CV in Chinese – Is It Worth It?

If you are looking for a job in China, having a CV in Chinese will enhance your chances in bringing you closer to the interview stage – it is definitely worth it!

Indeed, having your resumé in English and Chinese can impress your employers and increase your chances that HR or headhunters will find you!

Although it can be a bit daunting to prepare, even if you are at beginner’s level it is worth having a go!

So there we have it – your complete guide on how to write a CV in Chinese – feeling confident?

If not – drop us a comment below with any questions or concerns, but first and foremost, download our templates below to and get practicing!

FAQ + CV Template Download

Template Download ⬇️

Application form format
Other format

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PSST – DID YOU KNOW we’ve already written a few similar articles to this one which you might find of interest:

HOW TO – Write the perfect email in Chinese
HOW TO – Write a killer cover letter in Chinese
What it’s like to work for a Chinese company

We hope you like them as much as this one!

Resume Quiz

CV in Chinese || FAQ’s

How do you write a C.V. in Chinese?

Hopefully this guide will help you!

If you are still not sure feel free to pop a comment down below to ask any of your questions.

How do you say C.V. in Chinese?

CV in Chinese is 简历 (jiǎnlì)

Is the format the same as a Western C.V?

Not quite! Chinese CVs are more direct, and brief – ideally no more than two pages.

Hopefully this guide will help you identify the key differences!

Another difference is instead of reference letters, the self-evaluation section is more popular and common in China.

If I’m a beginner can I still write a C.V. in Chinese?

Yes! – have a go, it is a good way to practice and learn Chinese as you are describing yourself.

Is it necessary to have a C.V. in Chinese?

Yes – if you want to apply for a job in China it will definitely be beneficial to your career!

Should I ask my Chinese friend or teacher to review it?

If you are unsure of any word or sentence structure, we would totally recommend asking your friend or teacher for advice.

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